Dispensing and sealing system
A dispensing and sealing system generally includes a film-feed assembly with a support mechanism for a supply of film and a film-drive mechanism to advance the film along a path, a dispenser with an outlet port for dispensing fluid into the film, and a transverse seal mechanism for forming a seal in the film transversely of the path. A calendering device and a movable structure for the support mechanism are also described.
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The present invention relates generally to an improved dispensing and sealing system and, more particularly, to an improved dispensing and sealing system that is adapted to produce foam-in-place packaging cushions.
Foam-in-place packaging is a highly useful technique for on-demand protection of packaged products. In its most basic form, foam-in-place packaging comprises injecting foamable compositions from a dispenser into a container that holds a product to be cushioned. Typically, the product is wrapped in plastic to keep it from direct contact with the rising (expanding) foam. As the foam rises, it expands into the remaining space between the product and its container (e.g. a box formed of corrugated paperboard), thus forming a custom cushion for the product.
A common foaming composition is formed by mixing an isocyanate compound with a hydroxyl-containing material, such as a polyol (i.e., a compound that contains multiple hydroxyl groups), typically in the presence of water and a catalyst. The isocyanate and polyol precursors react to form polyurethane. At the same time, the water reacts with the isocyanate compound to produce carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide causes the polyurethane to expand into a foamed cellular structure, i.e., a polyurethane foam, which serves to protect the packaged product.
In other types of foam-in-place packaging, the foam precursors are injected into a plastic bag, which is then dropped into a container holding the product to be cushioned. The rising foam again tends to expand into the available space, but does so inside the bag. Because the bags are formed of flexible plastic, they form individual custom foam cushions for the packaged products. In several techniques, a specific apparatus is used to make the bag from plastic film while concurrently injecting it with foam. Exemplary systems for making such ‘foam-in-bag’ packaging cushions are assigned to the assignee hereof, and are illustrated, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,027,583, 5,376,219, 6,003,288, 6,675,557, and 7,607,911, the disclosures of each of which are hereby incorporated entirely herein by reference thereto.
While the forgoing systems have been highly successful, the inventors hereof have devised improvements to such systems.
One aspect for improvement pertains to the expansion of the foam within the bags. Generally, the foam precursors are injected into the bag at a fixed location relative to the width of the bag, such that the resultant foam is left to expand outwards from its initial injection point without further manipulation. In many applications, it is desirable for the foam to be more evenly dispersed within the bag. Ideally, such dispersion would be carried in such a way that a more uniform cushion-thickness results, and so that there is a reduced tendency for the expanding foam to escape the confines of the bag, which generally requires the foam-in-bag system to be shut down for cleaning and removal of the foam.
Another aspect for improvement pertains to the supply of plastic film from which the bags are formed. Generally, such film is supplied in the form of a roll, which tends to be rather heavy and cumbersome, generally weighing in excess of 20 pounds, and often more than 30 pounds. As a result, it would be desirable for an improved film-loading mechanism, which facilitates the film-loading procedure for the operator, i.e., by making it easier to load a fresh film roll onto the machine, but without lengthening or complicating the film-path through the machine.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for improvements in dispensing and sealing systems for making foam-in-bag cushions, which overcome the foregoing difficulties.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThose needs are met by the present invention, which, in one aspect, provides a dispensing and sealing system, comprising:
a. a film-feed assembly comprising a support mechanism for a supply of film and a film-drive mechanism to advance the film along a path;
b. a dispenser with an outlet port for dispensing fluid into the film;
c. a transverse seal mechanism for forming a seal in the film transversely of the path; and
d. a calendering device comprising at least two calender rollers, between which the film is advanced along the path after receiving fluid therein, the calender rollers having relatively non-parallel outer surfaces such that the fluid in the film is dispersed in a predetermined manner upon contact with the non-parallel outer surfaces.
A further aspect of the invention is directed towards a dispensing and sealing system, comprising:
a. a film-feed assembly comprising a supply of film and a film-drive mechanism to advance the film along a path;
b. a dispenser with an outlet port for dispensing fluid into the film;
c. a transverse seal mechanism for forming a seal in the film transversely of the path; and
d. a calendering device, comprising a set of calender rollers through which the film is directed after receiving fluid therein, wherein the calendering device is positioned downstream of the transverse seal mechanism.
Another aspect of the invention pertains to a dispensing and sealing system, comprising:
a. a film-feed assembly comprising a support mechanism for a supply of film and a film-drive mechanism to advance the film along a path;
b. a dispenser with an outlet port for dispensing fluid into the film; and
c. a transverse seal mechanism for forming a seal in the film transversely of the path,
wherein, the support mechanism is movable between an operating position and a loading position such that, when the support mechanism is in the loading position, the mechanism supports the film supply:
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- (1) at a relatively lower elevation than when the support mechanism is in the operating position, and
- (2) relatively closer to an operator film-loading site than when the support mechanism is in the operating position.
These and other aspects and features of the invention may be better understood with reference to the following description and accompanying drawings.
With reference to
Film 22 may be a center-folded film or, alternatively, a pair of juxtaposed, discrete films, e.g., from a pair of rolls. As illustrated, film 22 is in the form of a center-folded web with a closed longitudinal edge 32, as formed by, e.g., a medial fold along the longitudinal length of the film, a pair of juxtaposed film plies 34a, b, and an open longitudinal edge 36 formed by the adjacent, unsealed edges of the juxtaposed film plies 34a, b, which are generally parallel to the closed longitudinal edge 32. Film 22 may be formed from any conventional polymeric materials from which flexible films are made, including polyolefins, polyesters (e.g., PET and PETG), polystyrenes, (e.g., modified styrenic polymers such as SEBS, SBS, etc.), polyamides (homopolymers and copolymers, e.g., PA6, PA12, PA6/12, etc.), polycarbonates, etc. Within the family of polyolefins, various polyethylene homopolymers and copolymers may be used, as well as polypropylene homopolymers and copolymers (e.g., propylene/ethylene copolymer). Polyethylene homopolymers may include low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE). Suitable polyethylene copolymers may include a wide variety of polymers, such as, e.g., ionomers, ethylene/vinyl acetate (EVA), ethylene/vinyl alcohol (EVOH), and ethylene/alpha-olefins, including heterogeneous (Zeigler-Natta catalyzed) and homogeneous (metallocene, single-cite catalyzed) ethylene/alpha-olefin copolymers. Ethylene/alpha-olefin copolymers are copolymers of ethylene with one or more comonomers selected from C3 to C20 alpha-olefins, such as 1-butene, 1-pentene, 1-hexene, 1-octene, methyl pentene and the like, including linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), linear medium density polyethylene (MDPE), very low density polyethylene (VLDPE), and ultra-low density polyethylene (ULDPE).
Dispenser 14, which includes an outlet port 38, is structured and arranged to assume a dispensing position 15, as shown in
Within dispenser 14, the polyol(s) and isocyanate(s) are mixed, and the resultant fluid mixture 40 is expelled via the outlet port 38 and into film 22 as shown, wherein the fluid mixture 40 expands into a foam 44 within the film 22, as indicated by arrows 46 in
Film-drive mechanism 24 may comprise a set, e.g., pair, of nip rollers 48a, b, between which film 22 passes to advance the film along its path 52 through system 10. At least one of nip rollers 48a, b may be driven. As illustrated, nip roller 48a is driven by drive means, e.g., motor, 50, which is labeled as “M” in
As also described in the '288 and '219 patents, system 10 may further include a longitudinal seal mechanism, e.g., longitudinal edge-seal device 56, to close the open longitudinal edge 36, e.g., by forming a continuous longitudinal seal 58, beginning at a point just downstream of dispenser 14 and running substantially parallel to longitudinal edge 36 as shown in
Alternatively, as shown in
Transverse seal mechanism 16 forms a seal 60 in the film web 22 transversely of the path, e.g., transverse to direction 52. In combination with longitudinal seal 58, such transverse seals 60 enclose the fluid 40/foam 44 within the film web 22 in the form of individual containers 62, e.g., bag-like containers, as shown in
In
In some embodiments, the transverse seal mechanism 16 may be structured and arranged to both sever and seal the film web 22. Transverse seal mechanism 16 may thus further include a transverse severing element 76, to transversely sever the film web 22 in between the transverse seals 60 formed by transverse sealing elements 64a, b, in order to allow container 62, and all such containers, to be separated from film web 22. The transverse severing element may be an electrically-resistive element, which severs web 22 by heating to a temperature sufficient to melt through the web, e.g., as described in the above-incorporated U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,376,219 and 6,003,288. The temperature to which the severing element 76 will be heated in order to sever the film web 22 will generally be higher than the temperature to which the sealing elements 64a, b are heated, which need only be sufficient to cause film welding without melting through the web. Alternatively, severing element 76 could be a cutting blade or the like to effect mechanical severance of film web 22. As a further alternative, a single sealing/severing element could be employed, which both seals and severs the film web, e.g., as described in the '219 and '288 patents.
For applications in which fluid 40 is a mixture of polyol(s) and isocyanate(s) to form polyurethane foam 44, a gas 78 (
With continuing reference to
Calender rollers 92a, b may be rotatable, e.g., counter-rotatable as indicated by the opposing rotational arrows 91a, b in
Referring now to
For example, at least one of the calender rollers 92a, b, e.g., roller 92a as illustrated, may include a pair of end sections 96a, b and a middle section 98 therebetween. Further, roller 92a may be tapered, with a diameter that decreases from middle section 98 towards the end sections 96a, b, so that a gap is formed between the rollers 92a, b, which widens from the middle section 98 towards both end sections 96a, b. In
With the arrangement for calender device 90 as shown in
In other applications, alternative non-parallel surface arrangements may be employed. For example, it may be desirable to direct the foam towards one of the longitudinal edges 32, 36, e.g., towards closed longitudinal edge 32. In this case, instead of calender roller 92a having a symmetrical tapered shape as shown, an asymmetrically tapered shape could be employed, e.g., with the largest diameter section thereof being positioned nearer to the open longitudinal edge 36 than to the closed longitudinal edge 32.
In other embodiments, at least one of the calender rollers 92a, b may provide at least one excess-fluid escape channel. In the arrangement illustrated in
Calender rollers 92a, b may further include nip rollers to assist in the advancement of film web 22 along its path through system 10. Thus, calender roller 92a may include a pair of nip rollers 104a, b adjacent each of respective excess-fluid escape channels 100a, b as shown in
In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, calendering device 90 may be positioned downstream of the transverse seal mechanism 16, e.g., as shown in
Referring now to
This embodiment facilitates the process of replacing the film supply 20, when it has been depleted, with a fresh film supply 20, e.g., a full film roll 28 as shown. As noted above, film is often supplied in the form of rolls 28, which are generally heavy and bulky. Thus, it is desirable to minimize the extent to which operators of foam-in-bag systems must lift and/or reach in order to load new film rolls into such systems. By being movable to a lower elevation “h1” in loading position 112 vs., e.g., its higher elevation “h2” in operating position 110, the movable support mechanism 18 of the present embodiment facilitates the film-loading operation by requiring the new film supply 20 to be lifted to a relatively lower height h1 by operator 116 when support mechanism 18 is in loading position 112 vs. the greater height h2 when support mechanism 18 is in operating position 110 (
A movable support mechanism 18 in accordance with the present embodiment further facilitates the process of replacing the depleted film supply 20 with a fresh film supply 20 by moving horizontally closer to the operator film-loading site 114 when the mechanism 18 is in the loading position 112 vs. its location in the operating position 110. This necessitates less reaching on the part of operator 116 in order to place the new film supply 20 on the support mechanism 18 in its loading position 112 vs. its operating position 110 (
Once new film supply 20 is installed, e.g., placed, on support mechanism 18, the support mechanism 18 can be moved, e.g., along path 120, from the loading position 112 to the operating position 110 as shown in
As also shown in
An alternative arrangement is shown in
The 4-bar linkage system 126 further includes connector bars 128, 130, which are pivotally linked by connecting roller 132. 4-bar linkage system 126 also includes upright frame 134, to which connector bar 130 and loading frame 122′ are pivotally connected via pivotal fasteners 136a, b, and a handle member 138. Once the new film source 20 has been loaded onto the loading rack 108′ as shown in
Although not all the way into the operating position 110′ in the view shown in
In contrast to the cradle-type loading rack 108/108′ shown in
With continuing reference to
After loading a fresh film roll 28 into system 10′ and moving the support mechanism 18″ into the operating position 110″, the leading edge 151 of the film web 22 must be advanced from the roll and “threaded” through system 10′, i.e., initially placed within the film-feed assembly 12′, transverse seal mechanism 16, and calendering device 90. This process may be facilitated by virtue of certain additional features of system 10′, as will now be described. Thus, for example, alternative film-drive mechanism 24′ may be structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position (
Alternative calendering device 90′ may similarly be structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position (
A portion of vent mechanism 80, e.g., needle rollers 86, may also be mounted to pivotal bracket 154 in order to facilitate the film threading operation.
Alternative transverse seal mechanism 16′ may also be structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position (
Once the new film web 22 has been threaded into system 10′, i.e., by pulling leading edge 151 past the venting mechanism 80, film-feed assembly 12′, transverse seal mechanism 16′, and calendering device 90′, as shown in
The foregoing description of preferred embodiments of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention.
Claims
1. A dispensing and sealing system, comprising:
- a. a film-feed assembly comprising a support mechanism for a supply of film and a film-drive mechanism to advance the film along a path;
- b. a dispenser with an outlet port for dispensing fluid into the film;
- c. a transverse seal mechanism for forming a seal in the film transversely of the path; and
- d. a calendering device comprising at least two calender rollers, between which the film is advanced along said path after receiving fluid therein, said calender rollers having relatively non-parallel outer surfaces such that the fluid in the film is dispersed in a predetermined manner upon contact with said non-parallel outer surfaces,
- wherein, at least one of said calender rollers includes a pair of end sections and a middle section therebetween, said roller being tapered, with a diameter that decreases from the middle section towards the end sections.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of said calender rollers provides at least one excess-fluid escape channel.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein said at least one excess-fluid escape channel is formed by a gap region of reduced diameter on said calender roller relative to adjacent regions thereof.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one excess-fluid escape channel is positioned adjacent to at least one of said end sections of said roller.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein said calendering device is positioned downstream of said transverse seal mechanism.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein said support mechanism is movable between an operating position and a loading position such that, when said support mechanism is in said loading position, said mechanism supports the film supply:
- (a) at a relatively lower elevation than when said support mechanism is in said operating position, and
- (b) relatively closer to an operator film-loading site than when said support mechanism is in said operating position.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein said transverse seal mechanism is structured and arranged to both sever and seal said film.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein said transverse seal mechanism is structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position and an operating position.
9. The system of claim 8, wherein a portion of said transverse seal mechanism is pivotally movable in a plane that is substantially transverse to said path.
10. The system of claim 1, further including a longitudinal seal mechanism for forming a longitudinal seal in the film that is substantially parallel to said path.
11. The system of claim 1, wherein said calendering device is structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position and an operating position.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein a portion of said calendering device is pivotally movable in a plane that is substantially transverse to said path.
13. The system of claim 1, wherein said film-drive mechanism is structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position and an operating position.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein a portion of said film-drive mechanism is pivotally movable in a plane that is substantially transverse to said path.
15. The system of claim 1, wherein said film-drive mechanism comprises a set of nip rollers between which said film passes to advance said film along said path, at least one of which is driven, and at least one of which has a gap to allow fluid from said dispenser to pass through said nip rolls.
16. The system of claim 1, wherein said transverse seal mechanism and said film drive mechanism are structured and arranged to be movable between a film-threading position and an operating position.
17. The system of claim 16, wherein said transverse seal mechanism and said film drive mechanism are independently movable.
18. The system of claim 1, wherein said film-feed assembly, dispenser, transverse seal mechanism, and calendering device are attached to a frame in the form of an integrated assembly.
19. The system of claim 1, wherein said dispenser is adapted to dispense a material selected from the group consisting of polyols, isocyanates, and mixtures of polyols and isocyanates.
20. The system of claim 1, wherein said dispenser is structured and arranged to be movable between a non-dispensing position and a dispensing position in said outlet port is situated to dispense fluid into the film.
21. A dispensing and sealing system, comprising:
- a. a film-feed assembly comprising a support mechanism for a supply of film and a film-drive mechanism to advance the film along a path;
- b. a dispenser with an outlet port for dispensing fluid into the film;
- c. a transverse seal mechanism for forming a seal in the film transversely of the path; and
- d. a calendering device comprising at least two calender rollers, between which the film is advanced along said path after receiving fluid therein, said calender rollers having relatively non-parallel outer surfaces such that the fluid in the film is dispersed in a predetermined manner upon contact with said non-parallel outer surfaces,
- wherein, said calendering device is positioned downstream of said transverse seal mechanism.
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Type: Grant
Filed: Dec 12, 2012
Date of Patent: Oct 28, 2014
Patent Publication Number: 20140158305
Assignee: Sealed Air Corporation (US) (Elmwood Park, NJ)
Inventors: Michael Knaak (New Fairfield, CT), Scott Rote (New Lenox, IL), Mark Kurth (Beverly Shores, IN), Dan Johnson (Chicago, IL), Kyle Koning (Chicago, IL), Dan Somen (Chicago, IL)
Primary Examiner: Sing P Chan
Application Number: 13/711,997
International Classification: B29C 65/74 (20060101); B32B 37/00 (20060101); B32B 38/04 (20060101); B32B 39/00 (20060101); B30B 3/04 (20060101); B30B 15/34 (20060101); B65B 9/20 (20120101); B29C 44/18 (20060101);